Free. A term typically reserved for things you don’t want or don’t need. Or, if you do want them/need them, there’s a catch in the fine print.
Neither are the case here. Capital One cardholders currently have the opportunity to book a three-day golf trip to Northern Ireland, May 14-16, 2025, to play at Royal Portrush Golf Club, host of this year’s Open Championship. Sir Nick Faldo will be at the exclusive event, mingling with guests during a fireside chat and giving instruction at Royal Portrush. Accommodations at a luxury hotel, airport transfers and all meals are included.
For an experience that would typically cost thousands, you can book the trip for completely free using credit-card points. Cardholders can redeem 150,000 Capital One miles to book a single occupancy package, and the double occupancy package costs 250,000 miles total.
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Considering that welcome offers for popular credit cards from the company give you 75,000 miles (not to mention the points built up on everyday spending), this total is within reach for many. If you don’t have the miles or would prefer to pay cash, the packages sell for $1,200 (single occupancy) and $2,000 (double occupancy).
Mark Alexander false Private Royal Portrush Golf Club: Dunluce Portrush, Northern Ireland
- World’s 100 Greatest
- Best in Every Country
Portrush is still the only Irish course to host The Open. The Old Tom Morris design, reworked by H.S. Colt in the 1930s, was the Open site back in 1951, and was again in 2019, won by Irishman Shane Lowry. In preparation for that event, architect Martin Ebert added new seventh and eighth holes, fashioned from land on the club’s Valley Course (ranked 82nd), to replace its weak 17th and 18th holes. That means the notorious Calamity Hole, an uphill 210-yard par 3, will now be the 16th instead of the 14th, and the old dogleg-right par-4 16th will now be the closing hole, with a new back tee. Ebert retained Colt’s greens, considered one of the best set of putting surfaces in the world. The Dunluce course will host the Open again in 2025. View Course
The event begins with a welcome reception on Wednesday, May 14. The following morning, you’ll play 18 holes at Royal Portrush with a caddie while getting tips and advice from Faldo. The day concludes with a coat-and-tie dinner at the Royal Portrush clubhouse, where prizes will be awarded, and Faldo will host the fireside chat.
Maybe those dates don’t work for you, or you need more time to build up miles. Not to worry, as in September, cardholders can book a four-day trip to the Scottish Highlands to play either Royal Dornoch—ranked No. 2 on our World’s 100 Greatest list—or Castle Stuart, also a member of our World’s 100 Greatest. World Golf Hall of Famer Colin Montgomerie will be in attendance and host a clinic.
J.D. Cuban false Public Royal Dornoch Golf Club: Championship Dornoch, Scotland
- World’s 100 Greatest
- Best in Every Country
Herbert Warren Wind called it the most natural course in the world. Tom Watson called it the most fun he’d had playing golf. Donald Ross called it his home, having been born in the village and taught the game on the links. Tucked in an arc of dunes along the North Sea shoreline, Dornoch’s greens, some by Old Tom Morris, others by John Sutherland or 1920 Open champion George Duncan, sit mostly on plateaus and don’t really favor bounce-and-run golf. That’s the challenge: hitting those greens in a Dornoch wind. View Course
Guests will stay at Aldourie Castle on the banks of Loch Ness, and in addition to the golf, will have the opportunity to tour local distilleries and castles, as well as take a private cruise on Loch Ness. Accommodations, meals, tours and green fees are included in the cost.
The Castle Stuart package costs 475,000 miles (or $3,800), while the Royal Dornoch package costs 487,500 miles (or $3,900). At the time of writing, less than 10 tickets are still available.
OK, fine, there is a tiny catch. Airfare is not included. But for an avid golfer with a stash of credit card points, it’s hard to imagine better redemptions than these.
This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
